Mensa Otabil - Singing God's Word (10/06/2025)
This week, we are focusing on singing a very important part of our worship and praise to the Lord, and so we go to Colossians chapter 3. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord. There are many church songs that we sing daily, but not all of them are scriptural. It is one thing for a song to have God’s name on it or to even mention the name of Jesus, and it’s entirely different for that song to be scripturally and theologically sound.
So when we sing in church or sing a song for the Lord-whether it’s praise or worship-it is important that the words in the song are theologically accurate, that they are scripturally correct, and that they are not misleading. This is vital, as many of the songs we sing in churches today have catchy tunes; they are pleasant and inspire us to dance, but sometimes, upon closer inspection, we realize these songs do not accurately express biblical doctrines. Therefore, it is crucial that we be discerning.
Paul tells us three things to do in Colossians chapter 3:16. First, he states that the word of God must dwell in us richly. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly. This is where all Christian compositions should begin; the songs we sing must come from the well of the depths of Scripture within us. When the word of God dwells in us richly, it means it dwells in us accurately, deeply, and correctly. It is out of what dwells in us that we are able to sing.For all our songs, it’s important that Jesus Christ remains at the center-His work on Calvary, His victory, and all that He has done for us should be expressed in the words of our songs. God speaks to us when we allow His words to take deep root in our hearts. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly.
The second thing Paul states is that we must teach and admonish one another with songs. Isn’t that amazing? You might think that the only way we teach Christian doctrine is when the pastor is preaching, but here we are teaching and admonishing with songs. The hymns of a church, the songs, and the choruses we sing are all part of the doctrine that we encourage. If you teach one doctrine but the songs are different, then there is no convergence between what is taught from the pulpit and what is sung in praise and worship. The psalms were all songs. Just think about it: a whole book in the Bible is dedicated to songs, and they are the Psalms. When you read the Psalms, you encounter the richness of theology and the word of God, prophetic insight, and prophetic declarations, all coming forth as songs. Can you imagine the Scriptures without the book of Psalms? So much would be unknown to us, but all of those things we know came because of songs. It is essential that we sing inspired words of God.
Thirdly, we must sing with grace in our hearts. That’s what Paul says. It is good for a song to move your body, to dance and rejoice, but before the song moves your body, it must move your heart. It must come from the heart, reflecting in physical action. Do not just go to church to dance, rejoice, and shake your body, but go with your heart fully settled in Christ, with the words of the song representing the word of God properly interpreted, moving your heart and body-that is what real singing is.So today, as you go through the songs you’ve been singing, ask yourself: Are these songs scriptural? Do they glorify Jesus Christ? If they don’t, then you need to sing a new song.
Let’s pray. Say with me: Heavenly Father, your word is deeply settled in my heart. From deep within me, I will sing of your faithfulness. In Jesus' name, Amen and Amen.
I’ll catch you again tomorrow. I’m Pastor Mensa Otabil. Shalom, peace, and life to you.